14 Spirant Mutation

14.1 The spirant mutation happens after the conjunction/preposition a ('and', 'with' -- really the same word) and after the negative ni. It also happens after the word no ('than'), but examples of that will have to wait until we deal with comparatives in Chapter 21.

C > CH

cerdded > cherdded, corn > chorn, cyrch > chyrch

T > TH

treiglweith > threiglweith, trannoeth > thrannoeth

P > PH

parth > pharth, perfedd > pherfedd, pa > pha

This is the only situation, apart from foreign proper names, where the grapheme PH is used.

14.2Ni causes "spirantisation" of C, T, and P, lenition of other mutable consonants.

14.3

A threiglweith ydd oedd yn Arberth.

A thrannoeth, yn ieuenctid y dydd, cyfodi a orug.

A cherdded ar ol y cwn a orug.

A pharth a pherfedd y llannerch . . .

Marchawg a wyl, a chorn canu am ei fynwgl.

"A pha wlad oedd honno?"

"Mi a wnaf a thi gydymdeithas."

"Rhoddaf wreig i gyscu gyda thi."

"A chyrch y llys."

A phawb macwyf cyfarch well a wneint.

A threulaw a wnaethant bwyd a llynn.

Treulaw a wnaethant y flwyddyn trwy hela, a cherdd, a chyfeddach, a charueiddrwydd.

A phob un yw hawlwr.

A phan wnaeth hynny, ydd oedd Arawn frenin Annwfn yn ei erbyn.

"Ni chyfarchaf i well i ti."

"Ac ateb ni chaffaf / chaf i."

"Ni chysgaf inneu gyda thi."

Notes:

A hunting horn is often specified with the word canu to distinguish it from a drinking horn.

(and 17) gyda has developed from gyd a -- 'together with', and therefore takes a spirant after it.

macwyf -- 'squire, page' is a word which has aroused much interest. Is it from a hybrid Irish-Latin *mac-comes -- 'son of a peer'?

(compare 10) pob is a later form for pawb. Its use in this situation suggests that pob un may have been pronounced as a single word. Compare marchawg -- marchoges.